Another water treatment plant sought over NCD demand

THE increased demand for clean and safe water in Port Moresby requires another treatment plant to cope with the rising demand.
According to Water PNG Ltd, its only treatment plant at Mt Eriama outside of the city was built in the 1990s and produces around 190 million litres of water daily.
Water PNG officer-in-charge Bernard Thomas said the plant is operating at capacity now and the demand has now outstripped supply.
Thomas said work is afoot to increase supply by 10 million litres per day.
He added that plans were afoot for a second treatment plant in Port Moresby.
Last weekend, water supply into the city was disrupted due to maintenance work carried out by PNG Power Ltd (PPL) at Rouna.
Thomas had explained that the Laloki River was the only source of water that provided water for PNG Power to generate electricity at Rouna.
“The same water source provides the water for Water PNG’s water treatment plant at Mt Eriama,” he said.
“Because Water PNG relies on raw water intake that is built for power generation, every time this intake is shut for maintenance by PNG Power, water supply to the water treatment plant is affected.
“The maintenance work was carried out on Sunday night.
“Water PNG sincerely apologises to all water users in the city for the inconvenience.”